


One step closer...

by SteveM



Series: Building A Better World [6]
Category: Batwoman (TV 2019), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-23
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:55:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26062264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SteveM/pseuds/SteveM
Summary: Kara, Kate and Alex investigate separate leads into Earth First while Lena works with Ivy and Harley to try and track down any unwelcome visitors.
Relationships: Kara Danvers & Kate Kane, Kara Danvers/Kate Kane, Kara Danvers/Kate Kane/Lena Luthor
Series: Building A Better World [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1837882
Comments: 4
Kudos: 23





	1. Chapter 1

Lena Luthor groaned happily as the water cascaded down and eased aching muscles. A part of her found that slightly odd, for her body to be sore and aching just after getting out of bed but perhaps it wasn’t so surprising. After the night she’d had a little soreness seemed more than fair. She let her mind wander as she went through shampoo and conditioner, running her fingers through her long black hair to work out the tangles. She still couldn’t quite believe everything had happened the way it had or how good it had all been. Where things went from here she wasn’t sure but if that was the only time then maybe, just maybe, it’d be enough…

“You’re taking too long!” The door slid aside and she suddenly found the large space crowded as both Kara and Kate bundled their way inside. The little part of Lena that was always detached and observing the world marvelled at how different they were. Kara’s perfect smooth skin contrasted starkly with Kate’s tattoo-covered body though the rest of Lena was a little too busy staring to make any sort of comment. 

“Yeah, busy day ahead and all that. Can’t waste time!” Kate said with a smile as she blatantly checked out Lena’s curves. For what felt like the first time in her life Lena suddenly found herself blushing, something that wasn’t helped by Kara joining her wife in eating up the soaking wet eye candy. 

“Well… we could maybe take a *few* minutes out.” Kara said with a hopeful look at the other two women.

“Again?” Lena asked incredulously. She was pretty damn sure that Kara had enjoyed more orgasms last night than herself and Kate combined, surely she couldn’t still be….

“Super powers, remember?” Kara said with a wink.

“You get used to it.” Kate assured Lena. “It’s kinda like getting into a drinking contest with Alex.”

“Oh, you mean don’t under any circumstances get into a drinking contest with Alex?” Lena asked, understanding dawning.

“Pretty much, yes.” Kate said and chuckled at Kara’s pouting face. “Though in this case…” She let a hand dip between Kara’s legs and the sharp intake of breath and groan of desire from the Girl of Steel told Lena exactly where that hand ended up. 

“God you two…” Lena breathed and Kate threw her a slightly quizzical look. “Together I mean. You just… you look so damn happy just being together. Like you were made for each other.”

“Awwww…” Kara said, a dopey grin spreading across her face until Kate flexed her fingers and turned it to a gasp of pleasure. She pushed Kara back against the wall then reached out for Lena’s hand. 

“You, Ms Luthor, are quite the charmer.” Kate said with a look that almost had Lena falling to her knees to kiss Kate’s feet. “Feels like you should be rewarded for that.” She tugged Lena closer then eased her back to stand alongside Kara. Before Lena knew what was happening she felt Kate’s hand flick across her hips before arrowing down to caress her core. A finger, then two then thee slipped inside her and suddenly Kate had both Lena Luthor and Kara Danvers completely at her mercy.

“Now this, this I could get used to.” Kate mused as she let her fingers go exploring. The chorus of gasps and groans from her two willing victims was intoxicating, the warm water running over their bodies a lovely addition to the already spectacular sight. “The strongest woman on the planet and the billionaire genius… all for me,”

“Mmm-hmmmm.” Kara moaned in confirmation then she shuddered as Kate’s fingers flicked over a particularly sensitive spot. Kate found herself having to fight back the temptation to swoop in and devour the two beautiful women but she was determined to at least try and be patient. Straining her willpower she just let her hands do the work, pushing both women into the depths of pleasure while luxuriating in every moan, groan and longing look.

Before long Kara and Lena were half-leaning on each other in an odd mix of embrace and support. They, too, were just enjoying the moment but the siren song of the others’ lips was hard to resist. Unfortunately for them every time they lent in Kate noticed and sent a new wave of pleasure through them, thwarting any attempts to co-ordinate long enough to kiss. Thankfully for them both they soon felt their climax building and neither were in the mood to hold back. Kate was loving the sight of these two beautiful women panting and groaning as she drove them on, the water cascading over their curves… and just as she felt Lena stiffen around her probing fingers she stopped dead.

“W… what? Kate, what…” Lena gasped in frustration.

“Oh no, not this, please….” Kara whimpered but one look at the devilish delight dancing in Kate’s eyes told her exactly what her wife was up to. 

“Kara, what ohhhhhh yeeessss…” Lena groaned as Kate dove back to the attack, pushing them on again only to freeze as this time it was Kara who neared her peak. 

“Kate, please…” Kara groaned and she tried to wiggle her hips for the stimulation she needed but Kate was wise to the move and easily shifted to cancel it out.

“You know what I want love.” Kate whispered, barely audible over the rush of the shower.

Another flurry of motion had both women crying out first in delight then in despair as Kate left them both hanging on the edge.

“God damn it!” Lena cried. “Come on Kate, this is cruel!”

“Yeeeeeeeep.” Kate confirmed, risking a little more before they’d had time to properly come down. This time she had to stop after just a few seconds but it had Lena as close to an orgasm without actually having one as she’d ever been.

“Kara, what do we do!” Lena pleaded, not sure of the game but willing to do pretty much anything to play along.

“She… gggggg… she wants us to, to, to kneel.” Kara panted as Kate let her thumb trace long lazy paths over her wife’s clit.

“You’re kidding! Kate!”

“What? It’s a simple thing isn’t it?” Kate said smugly knowing that for these two it was anything but. 

“I… I….” Lena stammered as Kate’s fingers curled and found what felt like a direct link to the pleasure centres of Lena’s soul. The world seemed to fade out then snap back in to place as Kate let her fingers fall still against that very special spot. From the almost-scream of frustration next to her Lena assumed Kara was getting much the same treatment.

“Okay, okay, I’ll do it!” Kara panted and quickly realised the problem. When they were alone Kate would sink down with her, letting her ease to her knees. Now though both Kara and Lena had to do it together or the best she could manage was a half-crouch.

“Lena? Lena please…” Kara begged. “It’ll feel fantastic I promise. Please…”

“Oh fuck…” Lena tried to hold on, her pride screaming at her not to do it. She was a Luthor damn it, she didn’t bow and scrape to anyone! But… but… but her body desperately wanted to and in truth her mind did too. Kate was spectacular like this, in complete control of the situation, her tattoos gleaming in the water, her hair slicked back and that stunning figure on full display. It was the confidence though that finally broke Lena’s resolve. It was just so damn sexy and she found herself wanting to submit to this woman more than almost anything else she’d ever wanted. 

Slowly she started to drop to her knees and Kara mirrored her. Kate actually stayed standing for a moment, letting them feel the gradual movement of her fingers out of their bodies as they effectively pulled away from her the further they sank. Then, just her fingertips were almost in the open air, she followed them down, grinning evilly as both women knelt and first Kara then Lena spread her legs and lent back, supporting herself on her arms and displaying her body for the woman currently controlling her pleasure.

“Wow…” Kate breathed taking in the sight. “You two are simply stunning. One photo and I could make another fortune. Especially if you looked like… this.” Her fingers started slamming in and out of both women, curving and tapping at all the spots she’d just spent her time finding. Instantly they both raced back up to the precipice and this time there was no stopping as Kate drove them over the edge and kept right on going. Their voices rose and mixed in a beautiful symphony and Kate found herself thinking she’d never get tired of hearing that sound.

Eventually though she felt Lena start to squirm as the pleasure threatened to become pain and Kate reluctantly backed off. She made a quick mental note as she eased both women down that she might have gotten too used to Kara’s inhuman endurance, something she needed to consider if they were to do this again. Which, well, if she was any judge of her wife the odds were pretty good that she’d be not only willing but looking forward to it. Right now though Kate had two satisfied yet still shaking from the aftershocks women to take care of.

“Oh wow… thank you, thank you.” Kara gasped, reaching out and pulling Kate’s wet, naked body in to an enthusiastic hug. “That was incredible.”

“Believe me it was my pleasure love.” Kate murmured, extracting an arm and pulling Lena in to the embrace. “To get to do that with the two of you… no words.”

“Charmer.” Lena said somewhat weakly as she tried to regain her sensibilities. “You were right Kara, that was pretty damn fantastic!”

“You don’t know the best bit yet…” Kara teased, running a hand down Lena’s back and making her shiver at the touch.

“There’s a better bit? How!” Lena said in astonishment and Kara laughed, kissing first Lena then Kate.

“Oh yes.” Kara said, her eyes alive with mischief as she saw Kate realise what she was about to say. “See Kate has always believed in being… what’s the word… fair? Is that right sweetie?” Kara grinned as she saw Kate wince at the overly-cute term of endearment but she nodded just the same.

“One way to put it, yes.” Kate agreed.

“See you did what she wanted and it was incredible… but you still did what *she* wanted.” Kara explained. “So now you’ve got a free pass.”

“Wait, what?” Lena asked, slightly shocked and Kate nodded again.

“As Kara says, it’s only fair. Anything you want just ask. I’d like to give you some big long speech about providing it’s something I’m in to but, let’s face it, when it comes to sex there’s not much that would be out of bounds.”

“Wow…” Lena said, her eyes focused on somewhere a thousand miles away as she thought of the possibilities.

“Of course in this case Kara would have to agree as well.” Kate put in. “Everyone consents or it doesn’t happen, that simple.”

“Oh absolutely! Don’t worry Kara, I’m sure I can think of something you’ll want to try.” Lena said with a wink and was surprised to find Kara matching her smirk.

“Only if I don’t think of it first. I get one too, remember?”

“So, wait, we both get to ask Kate Kane, the Kate Kane, THIS Kate Kane… to do anything we want sexually?” Lena said, still exploring the full scope of the situation. “You’re absolutely sure you two didn’t kill me last night and this is heaven?”

“Pretty sure.” Kara laughed and hugged both women to her tightly. “But that’s going to have to wait, we really do need to get going and at the very least Kate and I still need to wash our hair.”

“Oh I’m planning on a nice long soak after that.” Kate told her wife as they all made their way rather carefully back to their feet.

“Are you now?” Kara said and the mischief was back in her voice. “Lena you’re done, right?”

“I… yes?” Lena replied, taking the hint and sliding the door open. She stepped through and closed it behind her, the frosted glass leaving just the silhouettes of the married couple in the rising spray of steam from the hot water. Something told her to wait a moment and sure enough…

“You sure you don’t just want to rinse and go?” Kara asked.

“Uh, yes? Wait, what are you…?”

“Consider this payback for swapping out the assistant outfit without telling me.” Kara said and there was a clonk from inside the shower as Kara jammed the temperature control all the way to the left. An instant later Kate yelped as the water ran cold, a sound that seemed to perfectly compliment the satisfied laugh from Kara as her Kryptonian physiology shrugged off the blast of chill water and she made sure to keep herself between Kate and the only escape route…


	2. Chapter 2

Lena wanted to go on ahead but both Kate and Kara pointed out the potential irony in something happening just because she didn’t want to wait ten minutes. In and of itself that wouldn’t have been a problem but as they finished up breakfast and headed for the front door a news alert pinged through on all of their phones.

“Oh great.” Lena groaned as she’d happened to have her phone unlocked at the time so saw the message first. “Massive traffic jam. Looks like something went wrong with the traffic lights, total gridlock in, well, all of downtown.”

“Any obvious villainy afoot?” Kara asked as she fished her own phone out to check.

“Not that I can see…” Kate said, rapidly flicking through the feed from the Batcave. “Just a programming error from last night’s update apparently.”

“So I guess we’re walking?” Lena said but Kate shook her head.

“Not a great idea. We know something’s targeting us - or, more likely, you - and there’s no way we could cover every angle in that crowd even with Kara along. Same goes for the trains and buses will be in the same gridlock as cars.”

“Well we need to get to L Corp if we’re going to ask Ivy to help check for more of those Parademons.” Lena pointed out. “If we can’t drive and can’t walk and can’t use public transport then that doesn’t leave us many options.”

“Umm….” They both turned and saw a nervous Kara shuffling one foot behind the other with a slightly worried grin on her face. “I’ve got a really bad suggestion…”

Ten minutes later all three were standing in Lena’s office though Kate looked a little more twitchy than usual. 

“I don’t know why you’re complaining, I didn’t drop you or anything.” Kara said as she triggered the kryptonian nanites to change her hair back to the red locks of Linda Lee. 

“You didn’t have hold of me to drop me in the first place!” Kate grumbled. “I mean, I get why you carried Lena, I really do, but hanging on to your back is not my preferred way to travel.”

“The arm option was definitely the more comfortable.” Lena said, unable to resist needling Kate a little. “So secure and comforting.”

“You are not helping.” Kate said flatly. 

“Tell you what, next time I’ll throw in a loop or two to give you a proper comparison.”

“Don’t you dare!” Both Kate and Lena said it at once, looked at each other in surprise and burst into laughter.

“We’ll work it out.” Kate said, waving away her own complaint. “Right now I think we need to get down to business.”

“Right, sample to Ivy?”

“She might not be able to tell us much.” Lena cautioned. “Remember even if this works the green will likely only be able to sense other Parademons. Any other visitors from Apokolips are probably going to get overlooked.”

“I know but it’s worth a try.” Kara said. “Right now there’s something else that I think we need to be more concerned about.” 

“And that would be?” Kate asked, clearly curious.

“Something hit me on the way over here.” 

“Yes, that was my fist when you rolled ninety degrees past the First National Bank.”

“No. Well okay, yes, that happened. Something else I mean.” Kara grew serious and the other two women followed suit. “When I was stalling the Hellgrammites at the Earth First party one of them seemed to think the DEO would hunt down and kill aliens just for being aliens.”

“That doesn’t sound like the DEO.” Kate said with a frown. 

“No it doesn’t. Doubly so with Alex running the show. But he seemed pretty convinced about it. And Myara seemed to think talking to the DEO would lead to trouble. So either there’s something odd going on or the DEO really went through some changes….” Kara turned to look apologetically at Lena who nodded and held her hands up in surrender.

“Fair question, you don’t need to be worried to ask. As far as I know Lex was using the DEO to police aliens but was keeping it just about on the right side of the line. It was more useful to him as a public first line of defence, that way he could keep stoking the anti-alien rhetoric in a nice, safe and legal way. Dealing under the table and making law-abiding people vanish off the streets would have been way too risky. Lex can be a monster but he’s always logical in his approach.”

“Thanks.” Kara said with a warm smile and reached over to squeeze Lena’s hand. “Of course that means there’s something else going on and we’ve got no real idea what it is.”

“I can look into that.” Kate said. “I need to stretch my cape after a couple of nights off the streets anyway. And if you’re okay with it Kara I think we should bring Alex in on this one.”

“Of course.” Kara said after a moment’s thought. “If there’s something rotten at the DEO she needs to be told and she’ll know where to look.”

“Talking of which…” Lena put in. “There’s something I was going to suggest that you take on Kara.”

“Oh? Do tell….”

“Earth First have been buying up property all over National City in the last few months but something about this one’s been bothering me.” Lena pulled up a file on her computer and threw the view to the huge TV screen on her office wall. “It’s a pretty basic office block and they paid a fair price for it… if it was finished.”

“It’s not?” Kara asked, running her eyes over the information scrolling by on the right of the screen,

“Externally it is but the inside was just a shell. All the key concrete floors were in to give the building its strength but that just means every floor would be, oh, thirty feet tall or so. Since they bought it there’s been an almost non-stop stream of activity but there’s no sign of any offices or apartments coming on the market. No press, no tours, no nothing. Whatever they’re building in there they don’t seem to want anyone knowing about it.”

“Ah, and you’re thinking the power of the press might have some luck?”

“Possibly. Or Supergirl can just fly by and take a look. Maybe both!” Lena said with a smile. 

“Worth a try, though if either of you need me you call me!” Kara said sternly.

“Yes mom.” Lena drawled as she rolled her eyes at the overprotective Kryptonian. 

“Aww, don’t be like that, it’s kinda cute.” Kate admonished her. “As if it’s us that needs the help. I seem to remember we had to protect her last night.”

“i’m not getting in to this.” Kara said. “So I’m heading to Earth First, Lena’s talking to Ivy and you and Alex are going to check out the DEO, yes?”

“Yep, that about covers it.” Kate said. “Oh, and I’ll get Luke poking around the Gotham Shard.” At Lena’s puzzled look Kate realised she might not quite have all the facts at her disposal. “Something about that place has been bugging me and for the life of me I can’t work out what it is. But when I was fighting the Hellgrammites something just felt.. off, somehow. Plus Sheena vanished real fast when trouble started, that suggests there might be a couple of ways off that observation deck that aren’t well known.” She paused and considered for a moment before continuing: “Or I’m just paranoid which is always a risk when you put on the cowl.”

“You haven’t been wrong yet.” Kara pointed out. “If you think it’s worth checking out it probably is.”

“Okay so, go team!” Kate said deadpan. “Lena, would it be okay if I asked Alex to come here? It’s close to the DEO so she should be able to make it even with the traffic problems and seeing you isn’t too far outside her normal day to day to arouse suspicion.”

“Sure, just don’t try and seduce her. Only I’m allowed to do that in here.” Lena said with a grin at Kara who tried very hard not to rise to the bait and mostly succeeded.


	3. Chapter 3

“Hi Alex!” Kate said with a grin, wrapping the redhead into a big hug. “Been too long.”

“It’s been, like, three weeks.”

“Yep, too long.”

“Well I’m not going to argue.” Alex said returning both the grin and the hug. “But why do I get the feeling this isn’t just a social call?”

“Because I didn’t ask you over for takeout and movies with Kara?”

“Might have something to do with it.” Alex agreed. “Also since when do you work out of Lena’s office?”

“Since she helped us analyse an alien organic fragment.”

“She… wait, why didn’t you just bring it to the DEO?” Kate had wondered what the reaction would be to that particular revelation but she hadn’t expected Alex to sound quite so hurt.

“Because there’s some weird things going on out there and we weren’t sure if the DEO was mixed up in it.” Kate said truthfully, leading Alex over to the low couch.

“How could… no, wait, sorry. Wrong question. Why would you think that?” Alex said, visibly getting herself under control. 

“Mainly because we heard the DEO were snatching up or even killing aliens just for being aliens. And there’s a big surge in anti-alien sentiment going on that neither Kara or I knew about and that almost certainly means you didn’t either. Which either meant there’s something going on at the DEO that even you aren’t aware of…”

“Or someone’s using the name to stoke up fear.” Alex finished for her. “Okay, that does make sense. So what changed?”

“Uh… we were kind of attacked by a Parademon on steroids last night. At home.”

“WHAT!”

“Well, technically we think it was hunting Lena not us.”

“You THINK it was hunting Lena?”

“Little hard to tell after it blew itself up.”

“Wait, was that what the explosion was?”

“Yeah. Sorry.”

“Everyone okay?”

“Yep, we’re all fine.”

“Then no apology needed. Now about this being a freakin’ Parademon!”

“Yeah, we’re still working on that.”

“Really? How, exactly, are you doing that?” Alex fumed and Kate couldn’t help a quiet chuckle. Not quiet enough as it turned out… 

“You think this is funny?”

“No, not at all. It’s just… you may have been Kara’s big sister for a little too long.”

Alex went to snap a reply then paused and thought about what Kate had just said. “I’m doing it again aren’t I?”

“Little bit over-protective, yeah. Not that I mind having another sister mind you.”

“Sorry.”

“As you said, no apology needed. Honestly it’s kinda nice for someone other than the invincible super strong alien to worry about me but don’t forget how I spend my nights.”

“Talking of, do I even want to know why Lena was at your place?”

Kate had been hoping that wouldn’t come up but as she’d asked… “Would you believe knitting?”

“No.”

“Bingo?”

“Not a chance.”

“Spanking?”

“Every time. How’s that work anyway?”

“Well you put someone over your knee, draw your hand back…”

“No! No, I know…” Alex blushed at Kate’s raised eyebrow and stubbornly stuck to her guns. “I mean how can you…well… share Kara?”

“Share her? I don’t own her Alex even if I do usually pick up the cheque when we’re on the town. We do everything together, partners. We trust each other completely and if we both think there’s someone else worth… umm, trusting then why not?” Kate laughed and shrugged modestly. “Look, I’d like to think I’m competition for, well, anyone if I’m not being modest but if Kara decides she’d rather be with someone else than me and that’ll make her happy I’d much rather she does that than stay with me and be miserable. I mean, it’d break my heart but when Kara’s involved she’s the only thing that matters.”

“You know for someone who occasionally complains about gaining a sister you do tend to say the right things to keep one.” Alex teased. “I’m so glad Kara found you.”

“Me too….” Kate said and she didn’t even care about the “Awwwwwww” from Alex at the soppy look on her face. “Anyway, now that you’ve gotten over the shock of us fighting a Parademon shall we get back to the DEO part?”

“Sure. I’m assuming you have a plan?”

“Wouldn’t be much of a Bat without one. If someone out there is pretending to be agents of the DEO they’d need the right gar. Last I checked most of the DEO equipment stockpile is in a seriously secure warehouse over at the docks. How’d you feel about having a quiet look?”

“We could just go in the front door you know. I’m the Director after all.”

“We could but if there IS anything dodgy going on I’m assuming there’s some process in place to hide their tracks. Plus you’d need a pretty good reason to tear apart storage crates where the cowl can scan everything in seconds.”

“So if Batwoman is going in… why do you need me exactly?”

“Because I won’t know what to look for and there’s a lot of ground to cover.”

“Right. And it’s not going to look at all suspicious having the director of the DEO snooping around with Batwoman?”

“Oh it would. Which is why I’m suggesting something a little… creative.”

Alex looked slightly worried but lent in to hear the details regardless. If nothing else Kate’s plans tended to be entertaining.


	4. Chapter 4

The bikes glided to a stop in the shadow of a large storage silo three piers over from the DEO warehouse. Two black-clad figures slid off and simultaneously fired grapples at the rooftop far above. They zipped into the blackness and anyone watching closely might have noticed two shadows flitting between cover and gliding between buildings as they made their way to the target until, after a surprisingly short time, they settled in next to a large air conditioning unit.

“You look good.” Kate said with a wink and saw Alex grin. It was like looking into a mirror. The red logo on Alex’s chest, the bright red wig, the suit itself… it might be Kate’s back-up costume but it was still an almost exact duplicate with only the very latest updates missing.

“I feel good.” Alex replied, turning her neck as she tried to get used to wearing a cowl again.

“Remember how the suit works?”

“It’s coming back, yeah. Uh… out of curiosity what happens if we’re both seen at the same time?”

“Hit them hard enough that they’re sure they were just seeing double. Or possibly quadruple.”

“Simple enough. Shall we?”

“Oh no, after you please, it’s your building we’re breaking in to here after all!”

Alex surveyed the wide roof, thinking quickly. She’d missed being Batwoman, even if it had only really been for a few weeks while Kate healed a broken body, and while she appreciated the armour Kate had made for her it did feel special to have the Bat on her chest again. That said it was also a bit weird not having Luke’s voice in her ear reassuring her and guiding her through whatever situation was in front of her. 

“There’s roof access on the east and west corners but there’s also some pretty major security on the doors. I could override it but the chances are it’d be obvious that someone with high level DEO access did it.” Alex said, thinking out loud. “No skylights or any handy windows, at least not since we patched the hole Supergirl made when saving a certain redhead from a Cadmus mole…. The air conditioning system is probably the best bet.”

“Oh great, I do so love seeing the vents of a whole new city.” Kate grumbled. “Any one in particular?”

“Yeah, let’s head for that run over there.” Alex pointed at a slightly larger than normal rigid metal vent going from one of the big air conditioner plants along the roof and down into the building. “If I remember right that feeds the bulk of the top floor systems so the drop down should be pretty short.”

She led the way over and carefully prised one of the side panels off the vent. She crouched down and crawled inside, relieved to find it was just big enough for her to move comfortably on her hands and knees. The cape made things a little awkward, something that didn’t improve as Kate secured the panel behind them and plunged the vent into darkness, so Alex bunched it up and threw it over her right shoulder letting it dangle in front of her.

“You remember how to turn on the night vision?” Kate asked from behind her.

“Umm… two ear wiggles? Yep, that got it!” Alex whispered back.

“Good view?”

“A clear one, I wouldn’t say the inside of a vent was particular scenic…. “ A sudden realisation hit Alex and she sighed in resignation. “And dare I ask how the view is in your section of this particular vent?”

“Much much better than yours apparently.” Kate said and she had to hide a chuckle as Alex did the only thing she really could in the circumstances and wiggled her hips, playing up the perfect view of her ass she’d just given Kate. Sadly, at least as far as Kate was concerned, Alex had chosen their entry point well and it was only a few minutes later that they dropped down silently to a catwalk running the length of the building. Below them there were tall racks of equipment, thin-walled office spaces some of which were open topped where privacy wasn’t required and even a few vehicles dotted around the place.

“Okay… you start checking out storage bays four through twelve.” Alex instructed. “That’s where most of the stuff you’d need to impersonate a DEO agent is kept. I’m going to head for the weapons lockers… just in case.”

“Stay in touch.” Kate said, a surge of protectiveness towards Alex washing over her. She was, after all, putting the other woman in harms’ way again even if it was for a good reason.

“You too…” Alex said then winked. “I really don’t think either of us want to see what happens if Supergirl finds out we’re in jail.”

Kate had to smother a laugh at the mental image and they split up, moving like ghosts through the shadows of the huge building. Kate had the easier time, the racks being mostly guarded by surveillance cameras which were trivially easy to avoid thanks to both her experience and the sensors built into the cowl. Making her way to the top of the three metre tall shelving units she perched on a corner and blinked three times, tripping the cowl’s vision system over to x-ray mode.

The first bay she checked was much as she’d expected. Boxes of kit, all looking pretty much as they should be. Neatly packed, sealed and - when she dropped back into normal vision - with a thin layer of dust on top. The next three bays were much the same but as she reached bay eight things changed.

“Oh shit…” Kate muttered to herself as she saw the crates. The crates that at a glance appeared to be just like the ones she’d already seen. Neatly stacked, thin layer of dust they had it all… except, when she glanced inside them, for being completely empty. She glanced around to make sure there wasn’t anyone in the immediate area then fired a grapple into the rafters and slowly lowered herself down. Once she was close enough she quickly grabbed photographs of the identifying labels and was relieved to see none of them appeared to be weapons.

With a sinking feeling she swung up to the next bay and, sure enough, that too was full of beautifully presented empty boxes and crates. She made it through documenting about half of the bay before the large roller doors at the far end of the building ground into life. Instantly she snapped the grapple into reverse, shooting back into the rafters just ahead of the slash of headlights as a large truck rolled in to the loading dock. 

In the office complex Alex was having to be a bit more circumspect. Here there were at least roving patrols to worry about though she couldn’t help but notice a sloppiness to their routes and alertness that made her yearn to tear strips off every last one of them. Instead she just ground her teeth and worked her way through the limited cover available until she got to the larger metal-walled armoury in the middle of the various scattered offices and workshops. 

On the plus side, Alex thought to herself as she eased around the corner by the only entrance, at least their lack of professionalism extended even to this duty. Normally there’d be two patrols walking the permitter designed to make sure the door was never unguarded. Instead there was just the one and the two agents with the duty were almost ambling on their route. She had a good sixty seconds alone in front of the entrance which was more than enough time for Alex Danvers to break in if she was naked. With the tech of the Batsuit at her disposal she could do it in six seconds let alone sixty. The camera was disabled from range long before she ever had to risk walking in front of it and the computer interface in her gauntlet overrode the lock just in time for her to push the door open and slip inside without breaking stride.

“Oh shit…” Alex whispered, looking around the room. On the plus side it wasn’t empty which was what she’d been afraid of. That wasn’t hugely reassuring however when every single weapon she saw was decidedly lethal. Considering J’onn had shifted the entire DEO to non-lethal rounds and firearms years ago none of this should be here. Yet it was a virtual treasure trove of death… was this something Lex had done Alex wondered. When he’d rewritten the timeline… no, no, J’onn had still been the director in this timeline too, had made the same decisions for the most part even if they were owned by Luthor Corp. So what the hell was this lot doing here?

As she thought the question she heard a muffled rumble from outside and turned, snapping the cowl into x-ray mode in time to see the truck pull in. More importantly she saw the men stepping down from the trailer, meet the guards on duty then turn and head straight towards the office complex. She didn’t need to see their exact route to know they were almost certainly heading to the armoury, there wasn’t anything else in this part of the building that would need a vehicle that large to move it.

Alex took a quick glance around the room but it was more out of habit than anything else. She knew the layout by heart and there just wasn’t anywhere good to hide here. That was kind of the point of a secure facility. One way in, one way out. No convenient vents, no floor grates or back doors and a distinct lack of roof access. The best she could do was slip behind an ammo safe just to the right of the door and wait. With a bit of luck they’d walk straight in and she could get in amongst them quick enough to stop them just slamming the door closed while they set up a firing line.

She could hear footsteps coming closer and pulled a Batarang from her belt. Despite the dire situation she found herself grinning. There was just something about the weight and size of the things that felt… good somehow. She heard the beeping as someone tapped in the security code, the clunk of the lock and the slight creak as the door swung open.

Everything went black.

Alex acted on instinct instantly turning on the night vision of the cowl and a quick glance was more than enough to show the men already inside looking around in confusion. She launched herself from hiding, Batarang flying to smack one of them unconscious, the hand that threw it coming around in a fist to knock the second one out cold, her fingers opening just after hitting the blow to catch the returning weapon. She turned on a dime and dove into the corridor, rolling as she hit the ground to trip three, four, five of what seemed in the odd artificial vision to be an entire battalion of robbers.

As she came to a halt she twisted and kicked out at a handy knee then bounded back to her feet just as a black blur raced by her. Kate joined the fight fists first, her movements swift, sure and efficient, a blur of motion as she took down one target in a flurry then moved on to the next. Alex slipped to the left and started working over the group that had taken shelter against the corridor wall, the thuds, crunches, and grunts echoing down off the walls in stereo as the two Batwomen went to work. It was a massacre, the robbers never having a chance against one of the two women let alone both. 

“So what now?” Alex whispered as they dropped the last one and stood above the groaning wreckage. 

Kate shook her head and beckoned Alex closer to a point they could grapple up back to their vantage point on the network of catwalks. She slipped a hand around Alex’s waist and carried her up, the grapple easily supporting them both. By the time their boots touched metal Alex had realised exactly what Kate was up to.

“Sorry.” She mouthed the word, trusting the night vision to pick up the movement.

Kate nodded and gave her a thumbs up. As Alex had just worked out it wouldn’t do at all to let these idiots know there were two of them here tonight. So one grapple, one clank of metal on metal…. No clues left behind unless there was no choice. Kate gestured towards the truck and Alex saw a group of eight men hanging around it, their body language radiating nervousness and worry at the continuing blackness engulfing the building. There was a little more light here as the city leaked in around the big roller door lending the whole scene a rather surreal air as shadows moved and shifted.

Alex felt a wicked grin spread across her face and one glance told her Kate had seen it. They moved together, no discussion or planning needed as they silently tumbled down to land behind the rear guards. The first thing the unfortunate men knew about their presence was a hand slapped over their mouths and an arm like a vice sliding around their neck to cut off their air supply. As they slumped to the ground after a few seconds of quiet struggle Kate and Alex split, each taking one side of the truck and scything through hopelessly outmatched guards.

As they neared the cab the last two men had finally realised they were under attack. They kicked the doors open and dove out, guns firing wildly in the dark. Alex was a step further forward and nailed the one on her side with an armoured fist to the jaw which sent him spinning back to crash against the front wheel. A sweeping side kick to the head knocked him out but to Alex’s surprise there still seemed to be gunfire coming from the other side of the truck.

She vaulted the hood and saw the last guy running for the storage stacks, Kate crouched over one of his men, her body shielding the unfortunate thug from the wild rounds fired by his boss. They both launched up into the rafters and started trailing the runner, Alex taking a moment to check there were no obvious holes in Kate’s side to worry about. 

“Let’s teach this guy a lesson.” Kate whispered and Alex picked up the anger in her voice. Shooting at innocents to cause a distraction was one thing but what this guy had just done was downright sloppy. She nodded and they both jumped to different stacks, taking position just ahead of the panicking man below.

As he neared the end of one bay he heard a rustle of fabric and before he knew what had happened a fist connected with his head from directly ahead of him. He lurched sideways and fired but there was just empty air before him. He turned slightly and started tracking along the edges of the bays only for a boot to slam into the back of his thigh. He tumbled forward but tucked, rolled and fired at his attacker… and once again found nothing facing him but blackness.

Even as he pulled the trigger a hand reached out from his right and punched him in the gut. Doubling over, gasping for breath, he jerked around and pulled the trigger only for the slide to lock open on the empty magazine. He hurled the now-useless weapon in what he hoped was the right direction but just heard it clatter on to the bare concrete. Desperate he turned and sprinted down the nearest stack only for a foot to casually trip him and send him skidding on his stomach. He scrambled back to his feet and backed up against the stack, looking around him in terror as he tried to see the demon that was moving so quickly, hunting him at will.

“Where are you!” He yelled into the darkness.

“Here.” The word was a whisper in his ear and as he spun he caught the briefest glimpse of a black mask, glowing white eyes and a fist heading for his face. 

Two minutes later both Kate and Alex were on the roof of the opposite warehouse keeping an eye on the DEO building to make sure none of their now tied-and-gagged subjects managed to wiggle their way out while waiting for the DEO squad Alex had just called to arrive and take them into custody. 

“Now that was a thing of beauty.” Alex said. “Pity about the mess he made.”

“I’m sure the DEO can find him a shower. And possibly some fresh underwear.” Kate replied with a grin. “We should definitely do this more often.”

“I can think of worse ways to spend my nights.” Alex admitted. “Which probably isn’t a good thing. Also Kelly and Kara would be fighting to see who gets to kill me first.”

“Oh it’d be Kelly, don’t worry.” Kate said with mock reassurance. “You’ve got Kara wrapped around your middle finger when you want her to be.”

“Well that’s… comforting.” Alex sighed, looking back at the warehouse across the street. “Talking of which, this isn’t good.”

“What did you find?”

“Lethal weapons where there shouldn’t be any and that bunch went straight for them. You?”

“Bunch of nicely stored empty crates. I got all the serial numbers so you check the details if anything got broken in the fight but it looked like uniforms, boots, riot control gear…”

“Oh great.” Alex winced, the implications not lost on her. “Okay, let’s get our Batbutts back to Lena’s office and see if her or Kara have had any luck. It’ll take the DEO a while to sort this out and I’ll pick up the full report in the morning.”


	5. Chapter 5

Supergirl hung above the cloud layer and ran a practiced eye over the tower block Lena had asked her to check out. 

“Well you weren’t wrong…” Kara muttered to herself, scarcely able to believe what she was seeing. The tower was a relatively modest twenty stories tall but that was just the outside facia. Inside she could only count eight floors in total, including the ground level. The bottom levels looked almost normal with offices, meeting rooms and even a pretty extensive gym but as she worked her way up things got downright weird. 

There were five big spaces all taking up what would have been three full floors in their own right. And within each was, well, a small slice of a city. It almost looked like a bunch of movie sets with chunks of offices and homes, open park space (albeit with plastic plants) and even a shopping mall. There were multiple elevator shafts running through the place and each was disguised within part of whatever scene was on that floor.

“Alright, think Kara…” Supergirl tapped her fingers on her thigh, wondering how best to try this one. She needed to get a closer look, that was for sure. No matter how good her eyesight sometimes there was just no substitute for being in a space and experiencing it as the people using it would. She let her gaze drop back down to the office levels and found the usual group of impressive corner offices that inevitably housed the upper management of any organisation. One was particularly impressive and she paid closer attention. 

She noted the nameplate on the door - G Goodness, Training Director - and the paperwork scattered around the place. To her surprise most of it seemed handwritten, a real throwback in the day of the computer and something she’d started to treat with suspicion for exactly that reason. After all not keeping digital documents was a hell of a good way to make sure they couldn’t be hacked. She noticed a small stack of documents in a locked cabinet and focused in…. and a smile crept over her face.

A few minutes later the rather bored guard in the lobby was surprised to see a gorgeous blonde in slacks and a sweater stroll through the entrance. She walked confidently up to the desk and gave him a warm smile that seemed to turn the world slightly pink.

“Hi, could you help me out with something?”

“Uh, sure.” It wasn’t the snappiest reply in the world but for someone getting hit full in the face with Kara’s best ‘innocent yet seductive reporter’ routine it wasn’t a bad effort.

“I was invited to tour the facilities tonight as part of a promotional piece I’m writing but I’m running a little early. From what I’ve been told there’s quite a bit to see so is there any chance you could buzz me through and I can get started?”

“I’m sorry….”

“Oh, Kara. Kara Danvers, CatCo Worldwide Media.” Kara said, turning the charm up a notch as she extended a hand. The poor security guard shook it in even more of a daze than he’d already been. Soft, he thought, such soft skin… so soft in fact he completely missed the strength behind the grip. 

“I’m sorry Kara but I’ve not got any information that there’s a tour booked for tonight.”

“It’s very last minute. Ummm… oh, hang on a sec!” Kara routed in the big bag she had slung over one shoulder, making a point to put her notepad and a voice recorder on top of his desk to help sell the cover story. “Ah here we are!”

She handed over the invitation letter and saw him read through it with surprise. His eyes focused on the signature and she forced herself not to hold her breath. 

“Could you wait just one minute for me please?” The guard asked, his resolve clearly starting to waver.

“Sure!” She watched as he took the letter and placed it face down on what turned out to be a flatbed scanner. Once again she felt a little nervous as he checked her credentials but sure enough…

“Huh.” The guard seemed surprised as the machine pinged a message. “Sorry about that Kara but security here is pretty tight. Everything seems to be in order, if you’d like to follow me?”

“Great, you’re a star!” Kara gushed, gathering up her things and taking the letter back with another winning smile. He led her over to the elevator bank and handed her an ID card with ‘Guest’ written on the front in large red letters. 

“This will get you access to floors three through eight. Everything else is locked down for confidentially reasons so if there’s anything you wish to see there just ask your guide. I’ll send her up when she arrives.”

“Thanks again.” Kara said as she stepped by him into the waiting elevator car and tapped the card to the very obvious reader. The buttons she had access to lit up and she pressed the top one. The doors whooshed closed with surprising speed but she noticed he tried to catch every last glimpse he could of her before they did so. She let out a relieved breath, grateful yet again for her super speed. Forging signatures was fairly simple when you could try a thousand times a minute and there’d been enough examples of similar ‘permission slips’ for her to pick up on the patterns used in the margins as a second security check.

Of course that had likely set off some alarms and while she hadn’t been invited Kara suspected a ‘guide’ would show up pretty damn quickly. Hence starting her ‘tour’ on the top floor, it’d buy her a few more seconds as they travelled up from the lobby. The doors whispered open and she stepped out into what looked like a small slice of a typical American city. A couple of brownstones, a small apartment block and a corner store all stopping after two stories where the ceiling cut them short. 

With a shrug she headed for the nearest residential home and stepped inside. It was fully furnished although she noticed that there were odd scrapes on some of the furniture as if it had been dragged along the ground or bounced off the walls. She glanced around and frowned as something hit her. There were the usual photographs on the walls and knick-knacks in cabinets… but they were all alien. Replicas of course but she even recognised one or two from some of the possessions she’d seen refugees bring with them to Earth. 

Now that she’d noticed that small detail it seemed to be a recurring theme. The kitchen was stocked with a mix of earth and alien products and utensils, the beds upstairs designed for different forms than your typical human. Even the bathroom was setup for someone with a very different biology than you’d find on Earth. With a growing suspicion gnawing at her gut she quickly checked the other building and the apartment block. Sure enough, every room was setup as if an alien lived there. 

It wasn’t until she looked in the corner shop that she noticed the scorch marks on the ceiling and then only because they hadn’t quite been painted over properly. She dipped her glasses to check them out and was surprised to see a considerable amount of carbon scoring, more than she’d expect from the usual indoor flame bars that she’d assumed had made the marks. Aware that time was pressing she did one quick check of the building then hoped back in the elevator to the next floor down.

Here there was a wide open park with a range of benches, fountains and planters scattered around. She had to resist the temptation to fly up a little and get a wider look, settling instead for a rapid walk around the edge before cutting across one of the gravel paths towards the cafe area in the centre. She was checking everything now with all the abilities at her disposal and as her foot pushed aside the gravel a sharp scent demanded her attention. She crouched down and let her nose guide her, fingers pushing aside the gravel until she found a handful of pieces that were very much the wrong colour.

Instead of the crisp white that made up the rest of the path these were splattered in a deep, inky blue. While she didn’t recognise the species she knew blood when she saw and smelt it. Kara had to force aside her anger as her suspicions grew. This wasn’t proof of anything, they could have had an alien employee here who cut themselves. For that matter the gravel could have come like that from whatever supplier they used. Still she pocketed the tiny rocks and made her way to the central cafe area. She’d barely made it to the tables when she heard the faint whoosh of the elevator doors cracking open.

“Mrs Danvers, may I ask what you’re doing here?” The voice was familiar and Kara looked up in surprise to see Sheena walking towards her.

“I’m not sure what you mean. I’m here for the tour?”

Kara could swear she saw Sheena grinding her teeth in frustration as the other woman closed the gap between them. “And what ‘tour’ might that be?”

“The one I was invited on as part of Earth First’s publicity campaign?” Kara said as she fished the invitation from her bag and offered it to Sheena who practically tore it from her hand.

“It’s certainly an interesting place you’ve built but, I have to admit, I’m not sure how this is supposed to benefit the planet?” Kara asked, leaning in to her journalist side. She knew she was probably poking a bear with a very short stick but the last few days had left her patience rather strained. 

Sheena practically growled as she looked up at Kara’s face, searching her eyes for the slightest hint of sarcasm but finding nothing but honesty staring back. “Unfortunately Mrs Danvers I think you’ve been duped. This isn’t a formal letter from this facility.”

“Duped? I don’t understand, the call came from your office.”

“Such things can also be faked.”

“Wait, the letter’s a fake? How can you tell?”

Sheena paused, suddenly finding herself caught in a situation where the only way out was to tell the truth. “We use multiple security checks on our documents, this is missing one of them.”

“And you can tell just by looking at it?”

“Yes. They’re subtle but obvious when you know what you’re looking for.” Sheena said and the double meaning in her words was obvious. She didn’t know anything, Kara knew, but the suspicion was there. The problem for Sheena was she didn’t know what, exactly, she didn’t know and the recent kidnapping in Detroit had shown the world that messing with Kara Danvers was an extraordinarily bad idea. While there wasn’t, thankfully, any video of the event the gang had clearly been talking in prison and rumours had quickly spread from the criminal world to the real news. Kara privately considered the stories underplayed Kate’s badassness but, again, that was probably for the best.

“Well as I’m here anyway…”

“No.” Sheena said flatly. “You’ll be leaving now Mrs Danvers. And none of this is to be published.”

“On what grounds?” Kara asked as Sheena took her right arm and guided her firmly towards the elevator.

“Corporate confidentiality.”

“Uh, technically I was invited and passed your security checks, I’m not sure that’d hold up in court.”

“You gained entrance with a forged document, do you really want to see what the law would say?”

“I had no idea it was forged and the phone records will show the invitation came from Earth First. It even passed the security checks downstairs so there was no reason for me to suspect any… impropriety.”

Sheena bundled her into the waiting elevator car and slapped at the button for the lobby. 

“Tell you what…” Kara said thoughtfully. “Give me some information on background. Just the basics of what this place is for. I won’t publish anything I saw or photographed here today out of courtesy, after all it looks like we’ve both been made fools of.”

“And what would you do with that ‘background’?”

“That would depend on what other sources I can find. If there’s enough to support an article it would be as a framing device only, no names of course. If there isn’t well, it just gets filed away as part of my expense account.”

Sheena seemed to consider this then nodded slowly. “You know of course that we’re developing safe, secure housing in Gotham? This facility is designed to train the security force for those developments. An extra level of realism allowing them to prepare for the unique challenges of that city in a location that ensures no criminals can see what their tactics might be. It allows us to achieve a level of precision and, more importantly, safety in our operations to ensure we use minimal force and then only when necessary.”

Kara nodded, scribbling quickly in her notebook. “And…”

“And that’s your background Mrs Danvers.” Sheena snapped, cutting off the potential question. “I trust you’ll honour your end of our agreement.” The doors snapped open and Sheena pushed Kara into the lobby, guided her past the security desk and the worried-looking guard then opened the front door for her.

“Of course. Thank you for your time.” Kara said and left before things got any more complicated.


	6. Chapter 6

“So how’d it go with Earth First?” Kate asked as Kara landed on the balcony and stalked into Lena’s office grumbling under her breath.

“Better than it could have.” Kara replied. “The DEO?”

“Not great.”

“That’s putting it mildly.” Alex broke in. “Looks like someone’s been dealing on the inside, either giving away or more likely selling a lot of our standard equipment. Uniforms, ID, most of our weapons and, oh yes, a bunch of guns with lethal rounds that should have been scrapped years ago!”

“Everything that someone could need to cosplay a DEO agent.” Kate said and saw Kara wince. “What is it?”

“That place Lena sent me to? It’s a training facility. Bunch of urban scenarios for…. well, they claim it’s to train a security force in non-lethal measures but I’ve worked with the DEO enough to recognise sweep-and-clear setups when I see them. Every damn building set up to look like an alien lives or works there. Plus a bunch of scorch marks on a ceiling from flames that burned WAY too hot for any training exercise.”

“That’s not good…” Kate said quietly, letting the new information slot into her mental picture. “You think they’re connected?”

“Seems like a bit of a coincidence when we’re hearing about DEO agents hurting or killing aliens doesn’t it?”

“More than that…” Alex cut across before Kate could reply. “If they really are training their own forces the DEO could be seen as competition if they had alien-related problems. A few DEO agents turning up guns blazing would make a compelling argument for us to be investigated. If they’ve got the facilities to train their crew to use DEO tactics, well, it’d be easy enough to fake.”

“Want to know another coincidence? Sheena turned up when I was doing the Scooby Doo thing.”

“Sheena? The same one from the Shard?” Kate asked, her eyes narrowing. “She didn’t strike me as a building manger. Or a hostess for that matter.”

“The same and she’s not. If I had to guess I’d say chief troubleshooter for the company.”

“Which makes this interesting.” Kate tapped her phone and threw a security cam video up on to the big screen. “This was the entrance to the Gotham Shard this morning.” On the screen they shaw Sheena step out of a large black Mercedes and stalk in through the front door. “From what we can tell she hasn’t left. So how the hell is she in National City?”

Kara hissed as a nasty thought hit her. “You’re thinking she’s from Apokolips aren’t you?”

“Boom tubes would explain how she got to your specific location so damn quickly.” Kate said. “Plus we’re starting to see a lot of new players on the board and the only ID we’ve got so far is that Parademon.”

“Oh terrific.” Alex groaned, remembering what had happened the last time the forces of Apokolips had been on Earth. “So what would they be doing mixed in with Earth First?”

“Good question and honestly I’m not sure yet. But widening the gulf between humans and aliens could really help a whole bunch of plans if that’s the way they’re going.” Kate pointed out. “First things first, we need to see if there’s a nest of those Parademons hanging around.”

“Lena?” Kara asked.

“Lena.” Kate confirmed leading the way to the private elevator. It always felt weird to be walking around somewhere like this in the Batsuit but seeing as how they were going to talk to two hopefully reforming supervillains everyone had agreed now was not the time to revert to their normal identities although Alex had swapped back to her normal field operations uniform.

Lena was waiting in the antechamber when they arrived and by the look on her face it wasn’t to deliver good news.

“Hey, how’s it going?” Kara asked, trying to cling to optimism even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

“It’s… slow.” Lena grumbled, glancing back over her shoulder towards the viewing window. “Ivy’s had to do some… uh… unusual preparations and now there’s nothing to do but wait.”

“Ah.” Kara smiled and Alex tried unsuccessfully to hide what could only be described as a snigger.

“Ah? Ah what?” Kate asked, looking from one Danvers to the other.

“Well the thing about Lena….” Kara started but Lena cut in.

“There’s nothing about Lena.”

“… other than occasionally talking in the third person…” Alex added.

“What? No, I… there’s nothing about me!”

“…. is that she really really reeeeeeaaaallllllly hates sitting around with nothing to do.” Kara said with a smirk.

“I don’t! It’s just… the world’s in danger!”

“When isn’t it?” Alex said with a shrug.

“We should be doing something!”

“See?” Kara said as she wrapped an arm around Kate’s shoulders to bring her in to the little circle.

“No, I mean we should be doing something more. There’s got to be something else we should be doing while we wait.”

“Too much brain…” Kara stage-whispered to Kate, tapping the side of her head. “Coasting along drives her nuts.”

“That’s a lie and you know it!” Lena protested but she had a sinking feeling she was going to lose this particular argument.

“Nope, sorry, she’s right on this one.” Alex added, stepping well within Lena’s comfort zone. “I seem to remember a conversation we had about, oh, three years ago…?”

Lena looked confused for a second then realisation dawned. “Alex, don’t you dare!”

“Ooooh, do tell.” Kara teased. “Was it the one about which of you looks better in a lab coat?”

“No and shush.” Alex admonished her little sister. “This particular conversation was a casual chat about how much it sucked when I got kidnapped by the nut job from Midvale and stuck in a death trap.”

“Alex….” Lena’s voice was almost begging but Alex was clearly having none of it.

“And Lena said that ‘at least you had something to do’, direct quote.”

“Ummm….” Lena was burning scarlet with embarrassment but Alex was clearly going to finish telling the story.

“And then, I think to make me feel better but it might just have been subtle flirting, she told me the worst way to torture her would be to tie her to a chair with absolutely nothing to do and just… wait.”

“I can see that.” Kate agreed. “But I have to admit not sure why you’re blushing that hard Lena?”

“That might have something to do with adding on…. Oh now what was it…. Ah yes, that ‘after an hour or two of that she’d kiss my feet to be let go’, again, direct quote.”

Kate blinked at the unexpected mental image, swallowed a laugh and raised one eyebrow. “Did you take her up on it?”

Lena looked outraged then caught the gleam in Kate’s eye and decided that after everything they’d done in the last day she didn’t really have much ground for complaint. “Hey now, be fair… you’d do exactly the same.”

“I’d never last that long.” Kate admitted. “But that’s more to do with Alex’s ridiculous hotness than any need to be doing something.”

“Argh, okay, stop!” Kara said, waving her hands in the air as if trying to bat away the words. “You want to flirt with my sister, do it when I’m out of earshot.”

“But you can hear me from anywhere on the planet love.”

“I’m well aware of that, what’s your point?” Kara said with a grin. “Anyway, probably ought to check-in with Ivy, see how things are going.”

“Umm, one other thing…” Lena said looking rather awkward. “Things got a little… weird so don’t freak out, okay?”

“Weird? We deal with weird every day, what would you think would freak us… out….”

Kara stoped dead and stared as she stepped through the door, forcing Kate and Alex to gently shove her to one side. At which point they joined in the staring party.

“Told you.” Lena said from behind them, not feeling like trying to muscle her way through three of the toughest women she’d ever met. 

Ivy was lying on a bed of vines, small tendrils sliding over her skin with a feather-light touch. Harley was moving back and forth between four different computer terminals keeping an eye on multiple screens of scrolling information though she always came back to the far left one that seemed to be showing Ivy’s medical readouts. None of that was particularly odd however.

What was distinctly unusual were the two large plants, one either side of Ivy’s ‘bed’. They flanked her like sentries and as the four heroes had entered the room they’d turned to look at them. And they *were* looking at them Kate realised in shock as each had two small tendrils running out to what at first glance seemed to be flowers but appeared to have eyeballs embedded in the middle of them.

“Stop right there!”

“Uh…. Supergirl….” Kate said, remembering just in time to use their superhero names. 

“Yeah…. I heard it too.”

“Oh thank god.” Alex breathed forcing her hand away from her holster. 

“That plant just talked?” Kate asked, still not quite willing to accept the situation.

“Of course I talked! What good would I be as a guard if I couldn’t talk?”

“Okay, getting serious Little Shop of Horror vibes here!” Kara said. “What’s going on?”

“I just told ya’ll! What, too good to listen to a plant!” 

“You’re her… guards?”

“Amongst other things. We’re multi-talented y’know!” The plant sounded almost smug as its tendrils crossed in a passable imitation of a human crossing their arms.

“Yeah, they’re really branching out!” Harley called to a chorus of groans.

“God damn it Harley, you said no more puns!” 

“Aww chill out Frank, humour’s a natural response to stressful situations.”

“Oh stressful? You think this is stressful? Try suddenly being given sentience and eyeballs, then talk to me about stressful!”

“Give me a break.” Harley muttered, turning back to check Ivy’s vital signs once again.

“You could at least actually be funny!”

“HEY!” 

Lena chose that moment to step around her friends and play peacekeeper. “Okay, that’s enough of that. Is she still doing alright Harley?”

“Yeah, everything’s still…”

“Harley, no, don’t do it!” Frank warned but there was a certain inevitability about the next words to be spoken.

“… in the green!” 

“Supergirl, please throw her into space! I cannot take any more of this shit!” Frank demanded.

“Uh, sorry… Frank is it? Throwing people into space is kinda a last ditch thing.”

“What do you think this is! It’s either that or I’m eating her. And then Ivy will get mad at me. Only she’s allowed to eat Harley.” This time Frank damn near leered which was frankly quite impressive for a plant.

“Frank, I told you!” Harley started to stalk around the mass of equipment, a small pair of pruning sheers in her hand.

“Oh bring it on bitch!”

Kara was just wondering if she needed to get involved when Ivy sat bolt upright, eyes wide as she snapped back to her own body. She rocked forward over her knees panting as she tried to adjust then looked back and forth from the armed Harley to Frank and back again. Frank was doing a remarkably good job at squaring up to the angry blonde stalking him but at Ivy’s glare he actually managed to look a little sheepish.

“Okay, what the fuck is going on? Could you two not keep from arguing for five minutes?”

“Uh, actually Ive it’s more like five hours. Also he totally started it.”

“What! You lying mother…”

“Frank!” Ivy snapped. “I’ve got a city-sized headache and have been out of my body for hours, this is not the time.”

“Are you okay?” Lena asked, deftly stepping around the various plant life and resting a hand on Ivy’s shoulder. For the briefest fraction of a second Ivy recoiled, her instinct to be as far away from people as possible kicking in before she realised it was Lena and relaxed into the touch. To Kara, of course, it was all as clear as crystal and she gave Lena a small, proud smile. For someone with such an isolated upbringing, not to mention the last name Luthor, she was remarkably good with people.

“I’m fine. Or will be once I get some sleep anyway.” Ivy said gently. “And, uh, thanks, Thanks for asking.”

Harley sat down next to Ivy and wrapped her in a hug, Lena letting go to give them their moment together. After a few moments Ivy murmured something to Harley then slowly stood up, stretching carefully as if she hadn’t used her muscles in days.

“Okay, so, the good news is there’s no nest of these things kicking around. Bad news, there seems to be at least one more in Gotham.”

“You’re sure?” Batwoman asked and Ivy scowled.

“The green doesn’t make mistakes. Not with this. These things just… just feel wrong. Out of place.”

“Don’t suppose you know where in Gotham?” Supergirl asked hopefully.

“Not exactly, it was moving around a lot and I don’t think it stays on the ground much. But somewhere downtown or, at least, underneath it.” Ivy hesitated as if trying to remember something half-forgotten. “Something else was around there too. Not one of these Parademons but something… that shouldn’t be there. Maybe a few somethings, I couldn’t tell.”

“Aliens?”

“Definitely but linked to this thing somehow.” She scowled as Batwoman opened her mouth to ask another question. “Don’t! I can’t explain it any more than you can explain how it feels to… to convert food to energy. But I’m right on this and as odd as this is for me to say to a Bat… trust me.”

“I do.” Batwoman said and Ivy looked surprised at the sincerity. “Thank you. And for the record I’m glad you’re trying to change, I really am. Both of you.”

“Umm… thanks.” Ivy said, exchanging shocked glances with Harley. 

Kate didn’t say another word until all four of them were back in Lena’s office. If anything she seemed lost in thought but Kara recognised that mood right away. Kate was thinking about her city, running through every last bolt hole and secret spot in her mind trying to figure out where to start.

“Alright, so what’s the plan?” Kara asked as they settled down into the comfortable sofas. 

“What makes you think I’ve got one?” Kate said with a small grin.

“You’re Batwoman!” Lena, Kara and Alex all chorused the words at the same time, each woman adopting a ridiculous growl as they did so. Surprised they looked at each other then burst out laughing while Kate sulked.

“I don’t sound like that…”

“Why waste a perfectly good stereotype?” Lena asked still chuckling.

“Anyway the plan is?” Alex prompted as she realised Kara was far too busy giggling to ask.

“I’ll head back to Gotham overnight and start hunting around. Between the Crows security network and Wayne Enterprises vast array of data and almost completely legal cameras we can probably narrow things down in a day or two. Kara, stay in National City until the weekend. Let’s see if Earth First decide to come after you for snooping around.”

“Plus I want to make sure they don’t send anyone else after Lena. Or Ivy and Harley for that matter.” Kara added.

“Thanks Kara.” Lena put in reaching across to squeeze Kara’s knee. 

“I’m going to be neck deep trying to figure out what the hell’s going on with the DEO.” Alex said apologetically. “But if you need me just call.”

“We will.” Kate promised and after a moments thought added “and hang on to the spare Batsuit for now. Might come in handy if you need to go digging through any more DEO sites.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“I’ll keep working on that scale sample. Now we know what it came from I might be able to find out a little more about it.” Lena put in.

“Oh, that reminds me!” Kara reached into the super useful cape pocket and pulled out a small ziplock bag. “Could you check this as well?”

“You want me to check… gravel?” Lena asked confused but her expression darkened as she got a closer look. “Oh, I see. I assume you want to know if that’s blood?”

“Yeah.” Kara said grimly. “I’ve got a nasty feeling about what sort of ‘training’ Earth First has been up to in that building.”

“No problem. And Alex if you need an independent place to work you’re welcome to use my facilities.” 

“Thanks, I just might take you up on that.” Alex promised.

Kate looked around the group and found herself struck all over again by how effortlessly they all worked together. It felt good to have her friends, her family, around her for this.

“Alright, so we all know what we’ve got to do. Let’s go to work.”


	7. Chapter 7

The boom tube snapped closed behind Sheena and she stalked through the dark corridors consumed with frustration. She barely remembered to knock and wait for permission to enter though the knowledge of what such a lack of respect would bring snapped her back to her senes just in time.

“So?”

“We should kill her.”

“Why?”

“She…” Sheena hesitated, trying to marshal her thoughts. “She is getting too close to the truth.”

“Come now sweetness, the truth is irrelevant. Too many of these humans wish to believe themselves superior, if the truth is revealed many of them simply won’t believe it.”

“They might from her!” Sheena looked shocked at her own outburst and started to stammer an apology. “I.. I mean…”

“No, carry on. Why would they?”

“She is well known here. Trusted. She is seen as impartial and fair. If she revealed the truth it would be seen as important and believable.”

“I see… and what else?”

“The hunter followed the scent all the way from Gotham back to Lena Luthor and found her with this one and her wife. I find it difficult to believe that this is a coincidence.”

“Oh it’s far more than that. That those three work closely with the heroes of this world is well known.” Granny waved a hand dismissively. “The Bat trusting Lena with her evidence is hardly surprising.”

“But to find all three together…”

“Do you question me?” The question was mild but Sheena knew the danger it posed.

“No, I…. Yes. Yes I do Granny.”

There was a clank of metal and energy burst from the tip of what seemed to be an ornate rod long enough for the short figure to use it as a walking stick. It reached out and embraced Sheena, flaying her nerves and sending her crashing to the ground screaming.

“Why?” The demand hung in the air as the assault paused.

“This… this… this Kara is more than she seems.”

Another crackle, another scream as the room lit up in harsh shades of blue and white. It went on for longer this time, almost a minute before Granny relented.

“Why?”

Sheena was shaking, her muscles rebelling against her but she knew she must answer. “B,b,because she has power.”

“Ridiculous.” Another stream of energy sent Sheena crashing to her back, arching instinctively to try and escape. A minute passed, two…. three…. Her scream became soundless as she shook helplessly until, finally, the darkness returned. Smoke rose from her body as she looked at Granny.

“No… no… I felt it… when I pushed her she resisted… only moved after the push…. Not with it. She’s the Kryptonian.”

Granny raised the rod as if to strike Sheena then paused, her expression suddenly thoughtful. Sheena took advantage, forced her body to work long enough to explain. 

“She was ready to protect people when the Hellgrammites attacked. She left the room when the Hunter attacked then the Kryptonian arrived. She forged your codes when the only way she could find them was to see through steel.”

“Interesting…” Granny lowered the rod and stared down at the shaking woman at her feet. “And all possible, true. So what do you suggest sweetness?”

“The wife, take her and force the Kryptonian’s hand.”

There was a short bark of laughter from Granny that had Sheena cowering on the floor. “And I assume you would like that pleasure yourself? You’ve been wanting to hit Kate Kane since the moment you met her.”

“No, she will come to us if we leave a path to follow.” Sheena said.

“The path is already there… yes, yes this may work. And if this Kara Danvers is not the Kryptonian then she is almost certainly close to her, they both are. That will give us leverage. Very well, we will do this.”

Sheena almost sobbed in relief then shrank back as the rod lowered to point at her again. “You, however, still need to learn your place. The chair, if you please.”

Sheena nodded and tried to pull herself to her feet only for her muscles to fold under her. Instead she crawled to the connecting room and dragged herself into a metal chair. She twisted in the seat to face Granny and restraints snapped closed over her wrists and ankles.

“As reward for your insight it shall only be an hour.” Granny said and her voice was a mix of sorrow and glee. 

“Thank you.” Sheena said then howled in agony as something deep within the metal reached out, passed through her and flayed every nerve in her body, setting her on fire from the inside-out without leaving a mark on her. The door slid closed and the last thing Sheena knew other than the pain was the tapping of the metal rod on the floor as Granny went to prepare the trap…

**Author's Note:**

> Just to confirm next week is definitely cross-over time! I want to keep a lot of who / where / what under wraps as a bit of a surprise but as a little taster... after far too long resisting temptation we finally get to bring Drunk!Kara in to the story!


End file.
